Celebrating An Year of Blogging With Litchi Kulfi

Hello Friends!

I can not believe that my blog turns an year old today, something which I had started very casually for some time pass on 21st May’09 has turned out to become a passion. I started blogging with my first post Maavinkaayi Chutney on 22nd May’09 which is a spicy raw mango chutney from the state of Karnataka and my family’s favorite. Then I celebrated my 50th post with Chocolate Muesli Bars and the 100th with Jackfruit Biryani. I managed to conduct my first event The Combo Event, which with your support turned out to be quite successful. I also started my second blog Kitchen-Basics this year which is completely devoted to the beginners in cooking and also my children. Here I post simple recipes, basic cooking methods and traditional recipes too, like recently I posted Masala Potato Upma  which is a traditional Karnataka style spicy Upma/ Uppittu(do check it out, it’s too good).

In this one year of blogging at Foodelicious I tried various cuisines and various ingredients which probably I would not have attempted otherwise. Blogging has helped me grow as a cook and at the same time I find myself more knowledgeable. So many terms and techniques used in the Culinary World which I was completely unaware of, have now became a part of my life.  Baking which  was a rarity in my kitchen  first came to an occasional level and then gradually to a frequent level. Baking is something that I have started enjoying a lot but has not reached the level of overindulgence yet. I am gradually understanding the ratio and proportion of ingredients used in baking, various substitutes etc. I also want to thank Maria and Rosie of Sweet and Simple Bakes who were an inspiration for me when it comes to baking. Please join me friends to pray for Rosie(Jules) who passed away 2 days back. She was a real sweet heart and helped me with my queries during my initial days of blogging.

Blogging made me come close to so many people whom I have never met in person but we have touched each others lives. I get to interact with so many people, have friends with whom I chat on FB, some friends via mail and so many are a call away. I love the feel of knowing so many talented and nice people who always make me a realize that life is so special and there’s so much to know and learn.Thank you friends for all the kind words that you leave here and all the support that you have bestowed on me and my humble blog.

Ideally I should have baked a cake for my blog baby’s birthday so I kept debating with myself on which cake to bake as there are so many of them  that  I have been wanting to try but no matter how much I convinced myself I was in mood to stand in the fuming kitchen for a long time and try an elaborate recipe as the sun is extremely angry on us and the heat is just unbearable. An hour in the kitchen and I feel exhausted and dehydrated. Finally I decided to post yet another cold dessert but this time with another beautifully stoned fruit Litchi/Lychee.

I am so glad that I made  this tasty and quick to make kulfi, it completely satiated us, just sucks in the heat. The white colour of the Kulfi makes one feel cool, a perfect treat in this hot climate and just apt for any kind of celebration.

This kulfi needs very basic ingredients and has the mild but extremely delectable flavor of Lychee. The same proportion can be used to make Kulfi with other fruits like mango, custard apple and strawberry too. This Kulfi is not heavy to digest as it does not use a lot of Khoya and additional cream. Let’s read how I made it and you would realize that I am not exaggerating on the simplicity of this preparation..

Ingredients

a litre of full cream milk

1/4 can of condensed milk

5-6 tbsp sugar (please adjust this according to your taste)

about a cup of fresh lychee pulp ( I used 3/4 cup fresh pulp and 1/4 cup Lychee crush)

Method

Seed the lychee and then blend it in a mixer. Sieve the pulp. Mix the lychee crush to that.

Take a heavy bottom pan and boil the milk and reduce it to half, keep stirring continuously and do not let the milk scorch at the base of the pan. Add the sugar and boil for about 5 minutes on high flame.

Cool the milk and then add the condensed milk and lychee pulp to it.

Pour the mix in kulfi moulds and freeze it for about 6-8 hours.

For de-molding, take a napkin in your hand and rub the mould between the palms or dip the mould in water. Garnish with some chopped Pistachios and fresh Mint and serve immediately.